Psalm 51:6-17 on January 12th, 2025
Above is audio of the sermon pulled from the video and amplified.
Below is transcript pulled from the video and formatted by artificial intelligence. There may be inconsistencies or errors.
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For a passage that is supposed to be about Jesus' baptism, Luke chapter 3 sure seems to avoid the big moment. This baptism seems like an afterthought. Mentioned alongside the baptisms of all the people and tucked away after a long segment on John the Baptist who isn't even mentioned as being at Jesus' baptism. But we'll get back to that in a bit.
Since much of the focus is on John the Baptist who is a lot less crazy here than in other gospels, I could probably get away with preaching on John's sermon instead of Jesus' baptism, but I chose the latter. Let's stick with the baptism.
As I mentioned, Luke doesn't give us much of a story about Jesus' baptism. It's two whole verses out of the 22 that we read. But even so, there are a couple of details that stand out.
First, the voice from heaven. This voice, unmistakably God speaks directly to Jesus. You are my son, the beloved. In his baptism, Jesus receives his identity as beloved son. The identity that the angel Gabriel announced to Mary several chapters and decades earlier. And along with identity comes affirmation of who Jesus is. With you, I am well pleased. These words, affirming Jesus' worth ministry and self are no doubt what he needed to hear as he began his ministry. What child doesn't want to hear such words from a parent?
And the second detail, which I alluded to earlier, is that John seems to have faded away into the background. Luke notes that John was imprisoned, though the other gospels give different timelines. Whether it happened before or after Jesus' baptism is unclear, but here's what's noteworthy. John has disappeared. He's not there in those actual verses where Jesus is baptized. But do you see who is? The Holy Spirit. John's voice in the wilderness is replaced by a voice from the heavens. And John's physical body is replaced by the Holy Spirit in bodily form like a dove.
John's absence shifts the spotlight to the work of the Spirit. God's action in baptism. The Spirit empowers God names and claims Jesus and gives him his beloved identity God's son. Identity, affirmation, spirit. That is what God does at Jesus' baptism. And that is what God does at our baptism too.
Baptism tells us who we are. We are God's beloved children. That is what God promises and proclaims through water and the Word. In a world where so many ways that we define ourselves are our influx or jobs shift, relationships, change, families evolve, our football teams lose, it's easy to lose our sense of identity. And then there's how the world sees us as consumers, as obsolete, as never good enough. I mean, it can leave us wondering who we are and where we belong.
And yet baptism reminds us we know who we are because we know who's we are. We are God's own. We are God's children. We belong to God's family. We are cherished. And water is the tangible sign of that forever love in baptism.
And just like Jesus' baptism, it doesn't really matter who is present. It's nice to have family and friends there, but it's the Spirit who does the real work, the Spirit who hovered over the waters at creation and descended on Jesus comes to us at baptism too. Through ordinary water, the Holy Spirit works through God's grace to forgive us, to bring us into God's family and to call us to new life. God is at work in those waters.
And because baptism is God's work and not something that we do, we can trust it completely. No matter how often we fall short, no matter what we do or we don't do, no matter the choices that we've made, no matter what, nothing can screw up the identity that God gives us through the waters of baptism. And because this relationship is securely in God's hands, we are no longer bound by that need to do. Instead we are set free, free to live, free to love, free to serve boldly and without fear.
And this God-given identity is also an affirmation. With you, I am well pleased. God claims us, names us, and promises that who we are. Because and all is accepted, is love, is forgiven.
And for me, nothing illustrates. God freely and graciously giving all this then by bringing a baby to the font. Babies haven't done anything against God, but they haven't done anything for God either. They haven't done much except sleep, gurgle, and you know. They are the perfect symbol of God's grace. We do not earn the identity that God gives us. And we don't choose God's acceptance. We've done nothing to be called beloved. God chooses us. And all we can do with God's choice is live into that identity with gratitude and try our best to be the person that God calls us to be.
And though baptism happens once, it isn't a once and done event. It unfolds throughout our lives as the spirit works in us and through us daily. So to make this a truly Lutheran sermon, as Martin Luther said, a Christian life is nothing else than a daily baptism. Begun once and continuing ever after.
And to bring that ongoing work of the spirit into our community of faith at this time, baptism is both a beginning and a call to keep moving forward. When the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus, it wasn't just to say nice things about Him and little hang out by the river. The spirit called Him and sent Him forward to act, to serve, to trust God's purpose for His life.
And in the same way, we are named and claimed as children of God, affirmed and loved, forgiven and graced, called and sent to move forward together in the challenges and the opportunities ahead. Both individually and as a community living faithfully means being ready to change, willing to grow and open to where the spirit leads.
That trust can feel daunting, especially in times of discernment and decision making. Yet we move forward together. Confident that God is already at work, shaping us into who God calls us to be. Even when the road ahead feels uncertain, the spirit is present, inspiring us to trust, to act and to live fully into our baptismal identity as beloved children of God.
The spirit's work is not finished at that moment. It continues throughout our lives, shaping us as people and as a community rooted in God's grace. So as we step into the future, both as individuals and as a congregation, we do so with the assurance that God has already claimed us. God has already affirmed us and God promises to always walk with us. The spirit that was there at creation and who descended on Jesus at baptism is still moving among us, guiding us and empowering us and leading us into God's vision for our church and for our lives now and forever. Amen.